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Resilience is an independent documentary film that explores the issues of inter-country adoption through the perspective of Korean birth mothers. Resilience reveals a side of inter-country adoption that is rarely looked at and often forgotten. For the very first time, Korean birth mothers break long-silenced shame and isolation to share their personal stories behind why they gave up their children and the impact the decision has had on their lives ever since.

Although international adoption is largely a humanitarian effort, there are misconceptions about international adoption that many people are not aware of. Poverty and lack of welfare used to be the reasons why a country could not keep its own children. What is interesting to realize now is that Korea continues to send their children abroad despite a stable and well-developed economy. South Korea is the 3rd largest economy in Asia, 10th largest in the world. Why is it still sending its children overseas?

The questions explored in this film are:
(1) What are the reasons why families are torn a part?
(2) What are the effects of separation on birth families left behind?
(3) What are possible solutions to improve women & children's rights in Korea? worldwide?

Meet the birth mothers...
Soon-im Choi was forced to go to a home for unmarried mothers by her husband's relatives prior to their marriage. There she spent the last three months of her pregnancy in complete isolation-- forbidden to leave, receive any phone calls or visitors. Young, vulnerable and completely alone, she was consequently persuaded by the counselors there to give up her baby for adoption.

Myung-ja Noh had no choice in giving up her son. She was a young, poor mother struggling to raise her baby with an abusive, gambling husband. Her relatives thought adoption was the best thing for the baby and so, brought Myung-ja's son to a hospital without her knowledge. The hospital contacted an adoption agency to take the baby. Desperate and heart-broken, she searched for her son for years but was unable to find him. Myung-ja's story shows the reality of adoption as a product of an inter-connected system in which adoption agencies pay hospitals, unmarried mothers.. homes, orphanages and police stations to notify them of potential adoptees.

Seung-hee Kim (pseudonym) was filmed in silhouette by request. She was date raped at a young age when she became pregnant. The man disappeared and she was sent to a home for unmarried mothers by her mother. She stayed at the home until she gave birth and was then pressured to give her baby up by her counselors and her mother. Her story reveals the seriousness and shame of being a single mother in Korea. Even though she was very young, she wanted to keep her son and suffered deeply because she couldn't. She hopes someday to meet her son.
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Resilience is for anyone interested in humanity, civil rights and social justice. Women's rights and child welfare. Korean and Asian citizens worldwide. Korean adoptees. International adoptees. Domestic adoptees. Birth families and adoptive families across the globe. Educators, media makers, documentarians. Anyone with an open mind and a means to spread awareness. Resilience will especially relate to birthmothers everywhere who could use some understanding.